Legging, gaiter, and the like



A. A. LETHER N LEGGING, GAITER, AND THE LIKE Original Filed Nov. 9,,192.3

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A. A. LETHERN LEGGING, GAITER, AND THE LIKE Origihal Filed Nqv. 9, 19232 Shasta-Sheet 2 Patented F eb. 24, 1925.

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LEGGING, ,GAITER, AND THE LIKE.

Application filed November 9, 1923. Serial No. 673,760. I RenewedNovember 11 1924.

T0 aZZ whom it may concern:

. Be it known'that IVALBERT ALEXANDER LETHER N, a subject of GreatBritain, residing at London, England, have invented a certain new anduseful Improvement in Leggings, Gaiters, and the like, of which thefollowing is a specification, reference being had therein to theaccompanying drawings.

This invention relates to leggings, gaiters and the like of the kind"which have a fastening device only at the top and bottom of thelegging.

Hitherto such leggings have been wrapped or wound upon the wearers legsomewhat after the manner of a puttee, or in some cases an extension orthrow over has been provided at the lower end of an ordinary fold overlegging adapted to surround the ankle and overlap the bottom edge of thelegging, an encircling strap being provided to fasten this put-tee-likeextension. In all such cases the legging is wound in one direction onthe leg and when a-throwover is provided, the under edge of the leggingis only held in place by the friction between its surface and the layerswhich overlap it.

*Theobject of this invention is to provide a legging which is of neaterappearance and is less likely to become accidentally loosened orunfastened than those hitherto used.

According to this invention, the legging comprises a fold over legportion having a securing strap attached to the lower end of its underedge adapted to be wound round the wearers ankle in the oppositedirection to the overlapping edge of the legging so as partially toencircle. the ankle inside the legging and then to be passed through anopening in'the back of the leg- V ging and caused to engage a fasteningslide or buckle carried by the lower end of the overlapping edge of thelegging, orby an extension thereof. Thus, when this lower fastening issecured, the inner edge of the legging is drawn close against thewearers boot and at the same time the outer edge is drawn in theopposite direction, so that there is no tendency for the legging tobecome uncoiled or for the fastening to slacken, even if relativeverticalmovement takes place between the inner and outer edges of thelegging.

r and legging expense and to provide alight on the outer side of the legwhile the lower endlies immediately above the "shin .Jbone and thereforein line with the center ofyjthe boot, a A This inclination of theoverlapping edge effectively prevents the entry of rain or water whichis apt to penetrate the 'joint when the overlapping edge is inclined inthe opposite direction andparticularly if the overlapping edge tends toopen or H l A gaiter or legging made in accordance with this inventionis not prone to gape, and the overlapping edge canbe kept in closecontact with the portion of the gaiter below it, even if the anklefastening. is comparatively loose, as in the first place such anklefastening is of a positive nature while "further, the. strap orlikesecuring device for the upper end of the legging can be so disposed as.to exert a direct pull in the same line as the overlapping edge.

If desired the strap which surroundsthe ankle inside the legging mayhave a protectivetongue or-strip below it to prevent friction andconsequent wear between the strap and the. wearers leg or boot.

The legging orfgaiter may'have a spat formed integral with it, thecombined spat being provided with three fastenings only, namely, astrapor the like at the top, a button or snap fastening at the bottom of thespat and an ankle strap adapted to surround the leg near the ankle andto be passed through an opening in the back of the legging as in thecase of the legging already described. When a spat is provided thecombined spat and gaiter are necessarily formed of some flexible wovenmaterial cut to fit the wearers leg and boot, the main portion of thelegging and spat (apart from the fastening straps) being preferably cutfromthree pieces of flexible material after the manner of an ordinaryspat or legging.

lVhen a legging without a spat is used,

leather or other flexible material if it is blocked-to fit the wearers-Jleg but to save legging suitable for general wear, it is preferred tomake the legging from three pieces of woven material, namely two legportions, to surround the shin and calf, and an ankle band or strip atapproximately right angles to the back seam uniting the two mainportions of the legging together, these parts being so shaped as to givethe legging a blocked appearance when they are assembled.

A preferred form of legging according to this invention constructed fromwoven material and suitable for both mounted or dismounted wear isillustrated by way of example in the accompanying drawings in which Fig.1 shows a development of a legging opened out flat.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a legging ready for use.

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the legging m use.

Fig. f is a front elevation thereof.

Fig. 5 is a rear elevation.

Figsa6 and 7 are views similar to Figs. 3 and 4:, showing a spat.

In all the figures a legging for the right leg is shown.

In the construction illustrated the legging comprises a main leg portionmade up of two separate pieces of woven fabric A and B cut to therequired shape, the adjacent edges of these twoportions being united bystitching 1 and preferably taped as at 2 or otherwise bound together soas to form the back central seam of the legging. At their lower endsthese two portions are secured to an ankle band C, approximately threeinches deep, and a slot D is formed in the center of this band inalignment with the back seam of the legging. This slot is preferablyprovided with a metallic eyelet 3 to pre-' vent the material fraying.

The end C of the ankle band to which the outer or overlapping edge A ofthe leg portion is secured, extends a short distance beyond this edgeand carries a slide or buckle E, and the opposite end of the ankle band,namely that adjacent to the inner edge B of the legging, carries anarrow strap F of sufficient length to encircle the wearers ankle. Theupper end of the legging is provided with any suitable strap fasteningof known type, the strap G and buckle or slide G being arranged to exerta pull substantially in alignment with the overlapping edge A. Theoverlapping edge may have a reinforcement of whalebone or steel but whenthis is provided it does not extend below the top of the ankle band C.

WVhen the legging is to be applied, first the lower fastening strap F iswound around the wearers ankle in an inward direction, i. e. towards theopposite foot, and the end of this strap is passed through the slot inthe back of the legging (see Fig.

2). The fastening strap F is taken further round the outside of thewearers foot and made to engage with the buckle E or slide carried bythe opposite end G of the ankle band. As the strap is tightened, theinner lower end of the legging is drawn closely against the wearersankle, towards the opposite foot and simultaneously the outer,overlapping end of the logging is drawn in the opposite direction, sothat both inner and outer lower edges of the legging are firmly held andthe ankle band can be adjusted to the required extent and independentlyof the upper fastening. The leg portion is then folded round the leg sothat the edge A overlaps the other edge B and the fastening G at the topof the legging is then secured, thus pulling the overlapping edge A tautand keeping it flat. This top strap G can be unfastened, withoutdisturbing the ankle fastening, thus permitting the gaiter to be openedto give ventilation, as for example during a halton the march.

Preferably a protective tongue is provided for that portion of the lowersecuring strap F which lies within the legging, and to this end theankle portion of the legging may be extended as at C beyond the pointwhere the strap F is secured to the main band C so as partially tosurround the wearers ankle or boot upper inside the legging.

, Such a legging may have a spat secured to it, (as indicated in Figs. 6and 7) and preferably such a spat is made up from three pieces, 5, 6,and 7 of woven material stitched along their upper edges to the loweredge of the ankle band. The instep strap and side fastenings of thisspat may be of any known type and in some cases the spat portion may bedetachably connected to the ankle band, as by snap fasteners or thelike;

The legging according to this invention.

possesses many advantages over those previously made. Apart from thewaterproof feature already mentioned, as a positive fastening isprovided'for both edges of the legging at its lower end, there is noneed for any superimposed coils around the ankle, and hence the legginghas a neat appearance. Further (the bottom securing strap is protectedfrom damage through friction with the opposite foot or from being torn,as for example against barbed wire, since the inside of thefoot is freefrom any projecting fastenings (see Fig.

Moreoventhe total weight of the legging is greatly reduced and where thelegging is formed of woven material and when made in three parts with anankle band, this band can, if necessary, be renewed when it becomes wornout without having to renew the upper portions legging.

of the lVhen the ankle band is secured to the leg portions of thelegging by sewing or the like, as in the example shown, so that thelower edges of the leg portions are overlapped by the upper edge of theband, an additional advantage is secured, as with such an arrangementthe upper edge of the boot can} be accommodated within the ankle handwithout actually coming in contact with the leg portions of the legging.Thus an ankle band can be used which though relatively thick to resistwear is of a sufficiently supple nature to give adequate support to theankle when the band is drawn tight.

It will be appreciated that the particular shape of the various portionswhich constitute the legging will be modified to suit the shape anddimensions of the wearers leg, and that although it is preferred to makea legging from three pieces of woven fabric, a blocked leather, or thelike, legging can be made incorporating the above characteristicfeatures without departin from this invention.

What I claim as my invention is,

l. A legging or gaiter of the fold-over type having a fastening slide orbuckle combined with the lower end of the overlapping edge, an openingin the back of the legging, and a fastening strap at the lower end ofthe under edge adapted to Wrap around and partially encircle the wearersankle in the opposite direction to the overlapping edge of the legging,and to be passed thnough the said opening and secured by said fasteningslide or buckle.

2. A legging or gaiter according to claim 1, having the overlapping edgeinclined so that its lower end is approximately central with the bootand shin-bone and its upper end is clear of the shin-bone on the outsideof the wearers leg.

3. A legging or gaiter according to claim 1 having its leg portionformed from two pieces of flexible material united to form a back seam,and having an ankle band to which the leg portion is connected at rightangles to the back seam.

A. A legging or gaiter according to claim 1 having an ankle band whichis lapped over the lower ends of the leg portions for the purposedescribed.

5. The combination with a legging or gaiter according to claim 1, of aspat extending from the ankle encircling portion thereof.

ALBERT ALEXANDER LETHERN.

